ATRDCI:actually it made it harder to elope in some cases since news that the couple had run away could get to famous eloping spots before the couple could get there by train to marry

And? If the couple was of legal age to marry, why would it matter that there was news over the wire that they had "run away"? And if they were not both of legal age to marry, they should not have been able to even in the absence of such news.